Alabama
Southern Miss
Ninth-Ranked Alabama Softball Travels to Southern Miss for Black and Gold Invitational
2/15/2018 10:42:00 AM | Softball
THIS WEEKEND: BLACK AND GOLD INVITATIONAL
Hattiesburg, Miss. – Southern Miss Softball Complex
Friday, Feb. 16
- vs. Southern Miss (2-4) – 1 p.m. CT
Saturday, Feb. 17
- vs. No. 24/RV McNeese State (4-0) – 1 p.m. CT
- vs. Mississippi Valley State (0-4) – 4 p.m. CT
Sunday, Feb. 18
- vs. No. 11/12 Baylor (3-0) – 1 p.m. CT
SCOUTING ALABAMA
- Alabama is 3-0 to start the season with three shutout victories last weekend. The Crimson Tide opened play with a 1-0 win at South Alabama before defeating Penn State, 10-0, and Lamar, 13-0, at the Sand Dollar Classic in Gulf Shores, Ala. Alabama was scheduled to play two additional games but inclement weather forced the final day of tournament play to be canceled.
- All three of Alabama's pitchers tossed complete-game shutouts on opening weekend. Senior Alexis Osorio went the distance against South Alabama, fanning eight batters while allowing just three hits. Freshman Madison Preston allowed only one hit in her Crimson Tide debut against Penn State, while junior Courtney Gettins took it one step further in her first game in crimson and white, throwing a no-hitter against Lamar.
- Sophomore Bailey Hemphill led the Tide at the plate, going 4-6 (.667) last week with four RBI. Sophomore Gabby Callaway drove in a team-leading five runs with junior Merris Schroder close behind at three, all of which came on an inside-the-park home run against Lamar.
- Alabama is ranked No. 9 in both national polls this week. The Tide will face two ranked teams this weekend in No. 24/RV McNeese State on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT and No. 11/12 Baylor on Sunday at 1 p.m. CT.
LAST TIME OUT: AT SOUTH ALABAMA, SAND DOLLAR CLASSIC
- Alabama went 3-0 on opening weekend with three shutouts, defeating South Alabama, 1-0, Thursday in Mobile, Ala., before taking down Penn State, 10-0, and Lamar, 13-0, Friday at the Sand Dollar Classic in Gulf Shores, Ala. Saturday's scheduled games were canceled due to inclement weather.
- After two scoreless innings between the Tide and the Jaguars on Thursday, sophomore Gabby Callaway drove in a run on an RBI groundout to put Alabama in front 1-0, which proved enough as senior Alexis Osorio threw a complete-game shutout with eight strikeouts.
- Seven different Alabama players earned at least one hit in a 10-0 win over Penn State Friday at the Sand Dollar Classic, including a 2-for-3 day from Callaway with a three-run triple and RBI double. Freshman Madison Preston threw a one-hit shutout in her Crimson Tide debut.
- Junior Courtney Gettins, a transfer from Florida Southwestern Junior College, impressed in her debut in crimson and white Friday against Lamar, tossing the 34th no-hitter in program history. She is the only pitcher in program history to throw a no-hitter in her debut. The offense gave her plenty of cushion to work with, tallying a season-high 13 runs over 4.0 innings at the plate. Sophomore Bailey Hemphill had three of the team's 12 RBI as did junior Merris Schroder, who did so on an inside-the-park home run.
GETTINS OPENS TIDE CAREER WITH NO-HITTER
Junior Courtney Gettins, a junior college transfer from Florida Southwestern, added her name to the Alabama record book in her debut for the Crimson Tide, throwing a 5.0-inning no-hitter in the Feb. 9 win over Lamar. She is the only pitcher in program history to throw a no-hitter in her first career start. It is the 34th no-hitter in program history and was the second for Alabama in the history of the Sand Dollar Classic, as Sydney Littlejohn threw a perfect game in the tournament's inagural 2015 showing.
SHUTOUT STREAK TO OPEN SEASON
Alabama shut out its first three opponents this season over 17.0 innings of play. This is the third-longest such streak to open the season for Alabama, trailing the 18.1 innings in 2005 and 29.2 in 2011.
Longest Start to Season Before Allowing a Run
- 29.2 (2011)
- 18.1 (2005)
- 17.0 (2018)
- 13.1 (2017)
INSIDE THE PARK HOME RUN
Junior Merris Schroder hit the first home run of the season for Alabama in the Feb. 9 game against Lamar, legging out an inside-the-park home run. It is just the sixth inside-the-park home run in program history, exactly five years after the previous one from Haylie McCleney on Feb. 9, 2013.
Alabama Inside-the-Park Home Runs
- Merris Schroder (Feb. 9, 2018 vs. Lamar)
- Haylie McCleney (Feb. 9, 2013 vs. vs. Drake)
- Ryan Iamurri (March 2, 2012 vs. Maryland)
- Brittany Rogers (May 16, 2008 vs. Jacksonville State)
- Brittany Rogers (Feb. 17, 2007 vs. Toledo)
- Leah White (Feb. 13, 2004 vs. Lipscomb)
Reagan Dykes HOMECOMING
This weekend's tournament at Southern Miss is a homecoming of sorts for junior catcher Reagan Dykes, who hails from Collins, Miss., about 30 miles northwest of Hattiesburg, Miss. The Tide already made one trip to Southern Miss during Dykes' career, a 7-1 win on April 12, 2016, in her freshman season.
ALABAMA SOFTBALL RANKED 9TH IN WEEK ONE NATIONAL POLLS
Following a 3-0 start to the season, Alabama softball secured a top-10 ranking in the national polls, placing ninth in both the USA Today/NFCA poll and the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
Alabama moved up two positions from its preseason ranking in the NFCA poll and one spot in the USA Softball poll.
The Crimson Tide opened its 2018 season last weekend with three shutout victories, defeating South Alabama, 1-0, Thursday in Mobile, Ala., before defeating Penn State, 10-0, and Lamar, 13-0, Friday at the Sand Dollar Classic in Gulf Shores, Ala. The latter game against the Cardinals was a five-inning no-hitter for junior Courtney Gettins in her Crimson Tide debut.
Twelve SEC teams are either ranked in the top 25 or are receiving votes. Ranked SEC teams include Florida (#2/2), Texas A&M (#6/8), LSU (#7/7), Alabama (#9/9), Tennessee (#10/10), Auburn (#13/13), Ole Miss (#15/18), Georgia (#17/17) and Kentucky (#25/25). Mississippi State, South Carolina and Arkansas are receiving votes outside the top 25 in at least one poll.
UP NEXT
Next weekend, Alabama makes its home debut, hosting the Easton Bama Bash at Rhoads Stadium Feb. 23-25. Action begins Friday, Feb. 23 when the Tide faces Georgia State (4 p.m. CT) and No. 8/6 Florida State (6 p.m. CT). Alabama opens Saturday play against Northern Iowa (1:30 p.m. CT) before a second matchup with the eighth-ranked Seminoles (4 p.m. CT). The weekend concludes on Sunday, Feb. 25 against Georgia State at 1:30 p.m. CT.
